A Brother's Decision
by carzla
Summary: [One Shot] It was never an easy task when it came to making decisions. He wondered if what he decided on was right. Two promises weighed down on him... and both were equally important.


**_A Brother's Decision_**

_Disclaimer:_

_I do not own BLEACH; it belongs to Kubo Tite. This story contains spoilers for the chapters 167 to 179. Feel free to hit the back button if you do not wish to be spoiled. I only own this plot idea. Thank you.

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**Full Summary:**

**One Shot It was never an easy task when it came to making decisions. Now, he wondered if what he decided on was the right thing to do. He had two promises weighing down on him. Both were equally important and equally significant on his actions.

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He had allowed the orange-haired brat victory, despite both of them being equally injured. He had allowed himself to break away from his own code by allowing the brat to live. Kuchiki Byakuya was also sure that Kurosaki Ichigo hadn't bothered to understand anything besides the victory. Had the boy looked deeper into it, he would realize it wasn't a true win based on his combat skills.

Now, he was walking. To where? In truth, Byakuya could care less. He was badly wounded, had blood on his robes and was missing part of his kenseikan. He probably looked quite the sight. He was in a total mess in comparison to his usual attire where there was not a speck of visible dust on his robes. Not that there was anyone around to see him now.

His mind was thrown into uncertainty once again. It was as before, when he first heard the result of the Central Chamber 46's verdict. He would no longer seek to capture Rukia, but that did not mean the other captains would not. Once Rukia was captured, she would face punishment again. There was no escaping this. Kurosaki Ichigo may have prevented one less person from joining the persecution, but unless he could defeat all the remaining captains, Rukia would still face her inevitable fate – **death**. The boy was very powerful – that was an indisputable fact – but his strength would never be limitless. If he failed to pull off the 'feat', there would be more lives on the line.

Kurosaki himself would die.

The other drifters would never leave Sereitei alive, having lost their strongest ally.

His vice captain, Renji, would have committed an offense by aiding in the rescue. Perhaps it would not amount to an execution, but with the way the Center 46 was dealing with things, it was possible.

So, the situation was just as hopeless as before. Should he even have allowed Kurosaki the _faux_ victory? By doing that, he had broken his promise, his vow to his parents – the promise to uphold the Kuchiki family rules as well as Soul Society's laws. Then should the worst-case scenario happen, he would break his promise to his late wife, Hisana – the promise to protect Rukia. If he could keep at least _one_ promise, to him, it would be better than breaking both at once.

What should he do now? He did not want to deal with the stares of those walking the Sereitei's many corridors. Nor did he want to face the shrines of his parents and his wife back at his house. What he really wanted to do was to be able to tell Rukia the truth. But it wasn't as if it would help matters. No it wouldn't help anything. He felt the irony of everything. He, Kuchiki Byakuya, was feeling _helpless. _He was actually _feeling_ some emotion despite having told Kurosaki that he felt no emotion that would lead to any form of weakness.

Byakuya didn't know how far or how long he had been walking aimlessly before he heard the urgent message from Kotetsu Isane, Vice Captain of the Fourth Division.

_"To all the Gotei 13 Captains, Vice Captains, and all seated shinigami as well as the drifters. I request your attention for a little while. This is the Vice Captain of the Fourth Division, Kotetsu Isane. I hope you can all hear me. This is an emergency message from Captain Unohana of the Fourth Division and myself. Everything that I am about to tell you is the absolute truth."_

Following which, Isane proceeded to relate everything, bringing the hidden conspiracy in Soul Society to light. Aizen Sousuke had faked his death. Then he, along with Ichimaru Gin and Tousen Kaname, had massacred the Center 46 and had used Kyouka Suigetsu to put up the illusion that the Center 46 was still well and alive. Kyouka Suigetsu's real power was "Absolute Hypnosis", the ability to hypnotize all five senses upon glimpsing the release of the zanpakutou. At the Central Conference Room, Vice Captain Hinamori had been found severely injured along with Captain Hitsugaya who was bearing a potentially fatal slash wound.

Byakuya stopped moving forwards. This unloading of information had shocked him, especially the betrayal of the three captains. Vice Captain Kotetsu Isane had not mentioned the three captains' real motive. But if they had been putting up the illusion that the Center 46 was still running… then Rukia's execution must have been the result of their conspiracy! Byakuya did not understand the reason for that action, but he knew that he would not, _could not_ allow Aizen to escape – especially with the possibility that Aizen would find Renji, who was currently escaping with Rukia. Byakuya had a hunch that Aizen, Ichimaru and Tousen had already cornered Renji and Rukia. He felt a chill descend upon him at that thought.

Closing his eyes, he reached out with his spirit aura, trying to find a lock on where Aizen and the other two were. It was quite difficult, for the trio seemed to be hiding or at least suppressing their spiritual pressures. But in the end, Byakuya managed to get a lock on their spiritual auras. To his dismay, Renji's spiritual pressure was in the same vicinity. There was no time for him to lose, and Byakuya tried his best to move at his fastest in his injured state. He dared not use shunpo for it would drain him further, and should he need to fight, he needed as much energy as he could have.

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After what felt like hours, the noble arrived to witness Aizen retrieve a small object from inside Rukia's soul. From where he was, he couldn't tell what the object was. Rukia didn't seem to be injured by the action and Byakuya felt relief wash over him.

Subsequently, he surveyed the area. Ichimaru and Tousen were standing some distance behind Aizen. In front of them, Kurosaki and Renji were sprawled there, looking very much on the brink of death. Renji was already unconscious. They had to have tried to fend off Aizen, but had failed. Kurosaki was still trying to get up; however, it was a fruitless attempt. Then there was also the fallen form of Komamura Sajin, the Seventh Division Captain. He must have been shocked that Tousen Kaname was a traitor.

Why did Aizen plot to kill Rukia if he wanted that strange item in her? How did Rukia get it in the first place? And why did Aizen bother to plan his "death" so elaborately? None of that made any sense to Byakuya. Had Rukia been executed, wouldn't the object disappear too? Soukyoku's strength was immeasurable… although a certain shinigami _had_ held it back with just one zanpakutou. At that moment, though, Byakuya's attention was quickly diverted.

Aizen had picked up Rukia by the red collar around her neck once more and was holding her out at arm's length. Kurosaki carried a look of fear at what Aizen was saying. Then, at the instance Ichimaru walked slowly forwards, one hand reaching for his zanpakutou, it clicked. Aizen was disposing of Rukia now that he had retrieved the item from her.

Time slowed as he watched Ichimaru's hand close over the hilt of Shinsou. He noted the ease and languidness of Ichimaru's actions. The ever-smiling traitor felt no hesitation to kill. Byakuya's gaze turned to Rukia. She looked like an abused and unwanted rag doll, hanging almost limply at Aizen's grasp. Aizen's overwhelming spiritual pressure must have caused it. Her deep violet eyes showed fear, but there was worry in them too.

Worry for the duo who had continually put their lives in danger to save her.

For unknown reasons, he couldn't move as he stared at the scene that was slowly playing out. Shinsou was already drawn out although Ichimaru had yet to release his shikai. Byakuya knew he should do something to save Rukia for there was the possibility that Rukia's crime did not deserve death. So _why_ was he holding back now? _Why_ did he feel this sudden apprehension? Then it dawned on him… perhaps he had always known, but refused to admit.

Why he had never appealed for Rukia was not solely due to his vow to his deceased parents.

It was not because he was very intent on upholding Soul Society's code and laws.

In truth, now he _had to_ admit, he had been secretly harboring hope that _someone_ would save Rukia.

Originally, he was unwavering in his decision about Rukia's execution. Even Renji's shocked exclamations at the Sixth Division cells that day had not affected him. However, once he heard about the appearance of the drifters and that one of them was an orange-haired shinigami with a large zanpakutou that was as tall as he was… Somewhere in that frozen heart of his, he had begun to hope for a miracle. Following reports of the drifters managing to evade and even sending the whole of the Eleventh Division to the medics, that faint embers of hope started to turn into a small but steady fire.

Then when Renji brazenly told him that he would go to Senzaikyuu to rescue Rukia, that flame burned brighter. Was that why he had not finished off Renji? Byakuya had known that his subordinate would die if nobody found him in time to take him to the Fourth Division. Therefore, if he wanted nobody to be in the way of Rukia's execution, he could have, and should have, made sure that Renji was dead before leaving. Yet, despite that, he had let that minute chance of someone finding Renji to stay. He had even covered the redhead with his scarf as a sign of respect…

It wasn't like Byakuya to do such a thing. Especially since Kurosaki had not perished despite being near death that night in the human realm. It was unlike him to consciously make the _same_ mistake twice. So, perhaps he had let Kurosaki win their earlier fight because… because the boy seemed capable of rescuing Rukia. Perhaps he had believed that Kurosaki _could_ ultimately pull off the feat and defeat all the other captains.

He had fallen into the potentially fatal trap that everything would work out fine without him lifting a finger, without his interference. Byakuya had previously despised anyone who thought that way… and to think, he had committed the same mistake himself. This time however, if a mistake was made, there was no turning back… for death in any form was irreversible.

The extending blade of Shinsou was approaching Rukia's form. Nobody else was in position to do anything. Nobody… The only one left was he, and Aizen and company had not detected him. He could no longer let his apprehension affect him. He could not be lulled into the false hope that someone else would appear to deal with Ichimaru's fast approaching blade…

Byakuya sprinted forwards; drawing all the energy he could muster to use the fastest form of shunpo he was capable of…

An unkind blade pierced deep into his side, but the petite figure of his sister was unharmed.

"Nii-sama!"

He knew, at that moment, that this decision was the correct one.

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**I just hope I didn't make Byakuya out of character here. This is just my take on his thought processes from after his fight with Ichigo to when he saves Rukia.**

**_carzla_**


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